The finance sector has a reputation of being
ingrained in their traditional ways, being nearly
impervious to change. Financial institutions and services tend to
involve a lot of paperwork, but things have changed in the past
couple of decades. Customers use PayPal these days to securely
handle all of their online transactions as they make online
purchases. You might not be able to name another electronic
financial service as ubiquitous as PayPal, but they do exist. They
are gaining popularity all over the world, and Singapore is
becoming a global hub for financial technology innovation.
A handful of Singaporean FinTech startups has attained
prominent success in recent years, with the likes of Xfers, Dragon Wealth, and Call Levels. However,
there is still potential for more companies to prosper. As a
result, Singapore is investing many resources in this particular
sector. The government wants to see more FinTech
initiatives from entrepreneurs. Ultimately, this will help
consumers tremendously. We want to show you how FinTech has changed
of lives of everyday Singaporeans and explain the FinTech
industry.
FinTech is a portmanteau of two words
– financial and technology.
It describes the emerging financial services sector that rose to
prominence in the earlier part of the 2010s. FinTech is changing
the way we do business. Paypal is a very good example of a FinTech
concept that many people in Singapore use quite regularly.
Several FinTech technologies exist, such as online
payments and transactions as well as data management and security.
Numerous Singaporean companies are investigating these issues to
make them available to consumers.
Ultimately, it is all about consumers and the way in
which they receive benefits from the advancements in financial
technology. Traditional methods of conducting financial activities
are dying, and they are being replaced by more modern,
technological methods.
We will look at some of the major FinTech applications and the way in which
Singapore is adopting these technologies.
For consumers, financial technologies
like mobile banking and e-commerce are very helpful. People are
constantly on the go in a metropolis like Singapore. Many do not
conduct their online banking from their home. In Singapore, many
people make their financial transactions on the phone while they
are sitting in the metro, making good use of their time. Many banks
in the nation already have such features in place to allow it; they
have mobile apps that make it very easy for customers to conduct
online banking transactions.
Further financial innovations have led to the concept
of a mobile wallet, also known as a digital wallet. Apple
and Google are spearheading the movement for mobile payment
solutions and systems with their Apple Pay and Google Wallet
applications. They bring your wallet or purse onto your phone and
truly digitalize the flow of cash.
Both of these mobile payment solutions rely on
contactless payment using near field communications (NFC)
technology. Singapore officially authorized the use of
NFC nationwide a couple of years ago, and consumers have
been “tapping” their phones everywhere. They tap their phones as
they board trains and hop on buses instead of using their older
EZ-Link transportation cards.
Many shoppers have even started to use their
NFC-enabled phones to pay for goods with digital wallets. Singapore
is soon becoming a cashless society with this
revolutionary contactless payment scheme, all thanks to
FinTech.
FinTech has already changed the way consumers in
Singapore behave and conduct their business in their daily lives.
It will only keep changing with new FinTech companies and products
emerging from the biggest technology hub of Southeast Asia. The
Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has expressed a deep desire
to foster and grow the financial technology sector in the country.
It is an integral component of its Smart Financial Centre initiative.
As awe-inspiring as it is to have such remarkable
financial technologies available to the public, there are still the
looming concerns of data integrity and cyber security. There is
always the threat of hackers and data thieves stealing sensitive
personal information as people use these FinTech apps.
To ensure that people are protected, the government of
Singapore has agencies that collaborate with financial companies.
They get FinTech firms in touch with engineers and Big Data
specialists to guarantee high levels of cyber security.
What does this mean for the regular consumer? Consumers
can use these products with the peace of mind that their personal
and sensitive data is never at risk from being stolen or put in
jeopardy.
Recent reports have shown that the interest in FinTech
in Singapore has spiked in the past year alone. Millions of dollars
are being invested in startups that are looking to shake things up
in the world of financial services.
In 2015, the entire continent of Asia raised
nearly $800 million in funding for FinTech startups,
making it the second highest funded region in the world for
startups, close behind the United States. FinTech investment in Asia in the year 2015 reached
$4.3 billion!
A big chunk of that funding was from Singapore, and
this tiny country is leading the way in FinTech development in
Asia.
Here are some fascinating FinTech startups that are
gaining popularity in Singapore.
A mobile application that allows people to use cashless
payments without actually having a bank account themselves. People
fill up their account on Numoni with cash, vouchers, credits, or
anything of that nature and spend their resources through
Numoni.
An app targeted for families to give them a chance to
keep track of their spending. Users can set spending limits and
notifications when they spend a certain amount. The app provides
detailed insight of expenditures across various spending
categories.
This application lets users trade virtual money and
allows them to bet on the real-world stock exchange. Although it is
a game, it lets aspiring investors get their feet wet with the
whole stock exchange business before they eventually decide to take
bigger risks with real money.
With numerous up-and-coming FinTech companies in
Singapore, consumers will soon be able to do things like lend
money, make payments, invest money, and manage and analyze personal
finances – all from an app on their phone.
The future is FinTech. The future is here.
thenewsavvy